STOP! Count the steps between the fridge and sink. You're going to have to schlepp food all the way across the kitchen just to prepare it to cook. You better put a prep sink in the island next to the fridge. There's a formula or two you seem to have missed in the planning stage. IWSF - Ice (where you keep fresh things cold) Water (where you take the fresh things for cleaning and prep) Stone (where you chop and prepare the fresh things) Fire (where you cook them.) There's a logical order to the placement of the fridge, sink, work counter and stove. Your work zones don't need to work you to death.

Thank you for the input; there isn’t a walk in pantry and storage is of higher priority to us than a second sink. We also wanted to keep the similar footprint to minimize costs. We’re happy with the layout just trying to figure out the island placement!

It would depend on whether you are having a dishwasher or not. Typically I have my dishwasher open and am walking around it to put things away.

Don’t worry about lining the island up with that corner, just choose the island that functions best.

Yes, I will have a dishwasher which will be to the right of the sink in the peninsula (I wanted to center the sink on the window so there wasn't enough space directly next to it)

A few questions which would help figure out adequate placement:

-how much clear space do you have behind your fridge?

-how much space behind your sink?

We can't see the REST of the space, or any adjacent spaces. But is looks like a kitchen seriously needing an actual kitchen DESIGNER, and one that would also be far better with a generous peninsula and NO island. Get a KD. Your fridge is a mile from your sink.

I agree this kitchen needs some serious help with layout the sink is too far away from the fridge , IMO if I have to run a marathon to prepare dinner the layout sucks. Not every kitchen s nneds or should have an island sometimes they just create trouble IMO a corner sink always creates havoc and in this case if you want the island that is where the sink and DW should have gone. Anyway too many things wrong for me to comment on the island it self.

We’re past the point of making changes on sink/appliances locations and ok with where those are.

My question is regarding whether it should be equal in spacing on the sides of the island to the perimeter cabinets (and if 3’ behind the sink is sufficient) or if I should shift the island to the left (closer to the fridge) which would leave 3’ behind the fridge and 3’-6” behind the sink.

Depends style of the FRIDGE. Meaning pantry style or single door. 42 inches between sink and island and same for fridge unless PANTRY style doors. If you only have 72 inches of walk/traffic to split..it's a non discussion. If you are saying you have 78 inches to split? Give each walkway 39 inches. and you still need a double door fridge.

All should have been considered prior to building the island : )

If the island would have been designed according to industry guidelines, I think you would have at least 42” from fridge handle to island counter. Why did you compromise this? Can you correct it?

Does the 3’ between fridge and counter equal the furthest fridge handle projection? Fridge depth numbers can be deceiving because some fridge specs require 2 inches behind for air flow and then the handles project quite a bit and before you know it your aisle is too tight.

3' behind the fridge is not sufficient. Measured from the center of the sink to the nearest point on the island, you have more than 3', more like 4 if I'm just eyeballing it. I think option 1 is the best of the two you've shown.

A bit out of the box, have you tried rotating the island 90° and leaving 4' on fridge side and stove side? How does that affect the sink side?

Rotating the island will put it in traffic and doorway,

Yup........ too late now, it was the ideal space for a peninsula : )

It might extend a few inches into the walkway if rotated, yes. It looks like there is room; space was left for island seating. The seating would have to be eliminated.

Honestly I would cut my losses, reconfigure the cabs to create a kidney shaped island that follows the curve of the room. Or do as Jan says and create a peninsula. You'll need to buy a corner cab but it will improve the design a lot and you can still have seating. Since the counters aren't in yet you have some options for redesigning imo.

I like option 1 - equal distance on both sides.

Lindsey is dead on with corner cabinet and peninsula. NOT every kitchen is meant for an island, you'd actually have more seating, and less seating in your way. better now than after tops.......

And OP don't let anyone try to bs you; reconfiguring those island base cabs into a peninsula at this point is *NOT* a big deal. I've heard enough of "sorry, that's impossible" about things that are clearly possible to know that sometimes "that's impossible" really means "I don't want to."

The potential for more seating.... yes, depends your tops and yes, seams . But. Depending top selection....

I'm so confused as to how this happens. Your island is being placed tomorrow, but you still don't know where it is going. Who is running this project? Who designed the kitchen? Ay yi.

ya left off an "yi" lol

Not that weird. The island is planned, cabinets bought. I can see her wanting to be in the set up kitchen to make this decision. I've made placement decisions on the fly. She's asking for an opinion because it's a special thing and she wants it to look good.

On one hand, you are saying, 'how can this decision not be already made' and on the other hand you are saying, 'change everything - switch the island to a peninsula!'

So, even the commenters are saying it is not unheard of to make placement decisions as you go.

If I were Heather, I'd have logged off long ago.

It was my first comment, and I don't mean disrespect to Heather. I just wouldn't want to be a homeowner going through a kitchen remodel and looking to the internet for last minute advice.

You know, it's really easy to experience brain meltdown when you're making a million decisions. In fact it is physiological, our brains use up glucose each time we make a decision and it doesn't get replenished until we sleep. No more glucose = no more decision making capability. So sometimes other people can see the solution that our brains just don't have the physical ability to realize. I don't see any problem with nicely suggesting a potential solution that a poster might have overlooked. Even if it wasn't asked for.

"Tomorrow" in the original post is in fact, today. So I'm guessing Heather is busy with her install. She may or may not have seen these ideas, and she may or may not be considering them if she did see them. It's not too late to help someone else in a similar situation though who might find this thread through a search engine.

...............well. If you post, you have to be prepared. The time to post is at the start of a project. Then......be prepared when someone says get (I beg ), PRO HELP ON SITE.

Because when people see better possibilities, they will voice them, even after the fact.. It's kitchen "heat" ? Maybe it is. But a kitchen lasts a lot longer than the month it would take to do this one better. ......and conversely your mistakes, or shoulda would couldas remain in the new kitchen.

I have a galley kitchen, which you do not. But a little word of advice....open your dishwasher door and see if there is room for it to open all the way.....same way with your oven door. Looks like enough room but just to be sure, try it. That will tell you where your island should be. In our galley kitchen the stove is across from the dishwasher......whoa----can't have both open at the same time. Your kitchen will be beautiful when done.

The cabinet company just brought up island placement for the remodel the day before (we thought it’d be the same as original) not prior so yes not ideal on timing. We are doing waterfall edges for the island and love the design of the kitchen and in person walking an extra two steps from the island to sink isn’t of concern to us. Yes I can see how the sink would be recommended in the island but I actually had it in my last house and loved this window sink so I can keep the island free of clutter/drying racks etc. - also I don’t think it’d be good to have the sink directly behind the range when often one person is at the range and another at the sink. Thanks all for your input

I'm glad you're happy with how it's coming along, good luck on the rest :)